MIT SHASS: MIT News from SHASS

The 2024 MacVicar Faculty Fellows are (clockwise from top left): Emily Richmond Pollock, Karl Berggren, Andrea Campbell, and Vinod Vaikuntanathan.

2024 MacVicar Faculty Fellows named

Meghan Burke | Registrar’s Office

March 15, 2024

Professors Berggren, Campbell, Pollock, and Vaikuntanathan are honored for exceptional undergraduate teaching.

The study indicates that workers who would experience a 10 percent wage increase by switching firms only expect a 1 percent wage increase instead, leading them to earn less than they otherwise might.

Study finds workers misjudge wage markets

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

March 14, 2024

Employees underestimate salary levels in their own industry, leading them to spend less time exploring the job market.

Director of Sustainability Julie Newman, Senior Campus Planner Vasso Mathes, Vice President for Campus Services and Stewardship Joe Higgins, Senior Sustainability Project Manager Steve Lanou, and PhD student Chenhan Shao share the many ways MIT is working to decarbonize its campus.

At Sustainability Connect 2024, a look at how MIT is decarbonizing its campus

Nicole Morell | MIT Office of Sustainability

March 4, 2024

The event featured updates from faculty and staff from across MIT, as well as a panel on communicating climate in the media.

“Death, Dominance, and State-Building,” a new book by MIT Professor Roger Petersen, takes a close look at military operations and political dynamics of the Iraq War.

A careful rethinking of the Iraq War

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

March 1, 2024

Roger Petersen’s new book details military operations and political dynamics in Iraq, shedding new light on the challenges of state-building.

Grant recipients for 2024 include Kimberly Juanita Brown, Michel DeGraff, Amanda Greene, Silas Munro, and Anna Von Mertens.

The MIT Press announces Grant Program for Diverse Voices recipients for 2024

Jessica Pellien | MIT Press

February 28, 2024

From a scholarly monograph on Haitian language to a feminist history of social media photography, grant recipients bring new perspectives to the world through the MIT Press.

Simon Johnson delivers remarks at the MIT Shaping the Future of Work Launch Event.

3 Questions: Shaping the future of work in an age of AI

Blueprint Labs

February 28, 2024

Daron Acemoglu, David Autor, and Simon Johnson, faculty co-directors of the new MIT Shaping the Future of Work Initiative, describe why the work matters and what they hope to achieve.

Instructor Soledad Chango leads students through a traditional indigenous dance during a Quechua at MIT session.

Investigating and preserving Quechua

Benjamin Daniel | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

February 28, 2024

MIT students studied the Indigenous language during a new Independent Activities Period course to gain exposure and understand the language’s cultural and practical value.

Gosha Geogdzhayev (left) and Sadhana Lolla

Gosha Geogdzhayev and Sadhana Lolla named 2024 Gates Cambridge Scholars

Julia Mongo | Office of Distinguished Fellowships

February 27, 2024

The MIT seniors will pursue graduate studies at Cambridge University.

Sadhana Lolla is majoring in computer science and minoring in mathematics and literature.

Sadhana Lolla named 2024 Gates Cambridge Scholar

Julia Mongo | Office of Distinguished Fellowships

February 27, 2024

The MIT senior will pursue graduate studies in technology policy at Cambridge University.

Lydia Brosnahan (left) helped individuals who took part in beta testing for a virtual reality game that was part of “The Invisible College” project by CAST Distinguished Visiting Artist Matthew Ritchie.

Faces of MIT: Lydia Brosnahan

Katy Dandurand | MIT Human Resources

February 23, 2024

The associate producer shares how arts initiatives bring different departments together in collaboration and community.

Burchard Scholars will attend seminar dinners with members of the SHASS faculty, during which they will have the chance to engage with the faculty and one another.

Thirty-five outstanding MIT students selected as Burchard Scholars for 2024

Benjamin Daniel | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

February 21, 2024

Undergraduates selected for the competitive program enjoy a seminar series and conversations over dinners with distinguished faculty.

Mi-Eun Kim (seated), pianist and lecturer at MIT Music and Theater Arts, and student Holden Mui interact with the Steinway Spirio.

Play it again, Spirio

Nicole Estvanik Taylor | Arts at MIT

February 21, 2024

A piano that captures the data of live performance offers the MIT community new possibilities for studying and experimenting with music.

Alex Byrne is a philosopher at MIT and the author of "Trouble with Gender."

An MIT philosopher’s call for a civil discussion on gender and sex

Benjamin Daniel | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

February 20, 2024

In “Trouble with Gender: Sex Facts, Gender Fictions,” MIT Professor Alex Byrne argues for a return to a more inclusive brand of philosophical inquiry.

Emily Goodling is a lecturer in German in MIT Global Languages.

3 Questions: Why study theater in a German language class?

Lisa Hickler | MIT Global Languages

February 14, 2024

Using theatrical expressions of real-life situations, Emily Goodling's students study Germany's artistic response to global events.

MIT senior Anushree Chaudhuri wants to make sure the transition to cleaner technologies is not only more sustainable, but also more just.

Anushree Chaudhuri: Involving local communities in renewable energy planning

Angelina Parrillo | MIT News correspondent

February 14, 2024

As societies move to cleaner technologies, the MIT senior seeks to make the transition more sustainable and just.

Paloma Duong is the author of the new book, “Portable Postsocialisms: New Cuban Mediascapes after the End of History,” published by University of Texas Press.

3 Questions: Paloma Duong on the complexities of Cuban culture

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

February 14, 2024

The scholar’s new book looks at perspectives of the Cuban people through a study of online media, music, fashion, and contemporary communication.

“I realized that I could raise very interesting questions at the intersection of astronomy and political science,” says MIT undergraduate Leela Fredlund. Through projects at MIT and at institutions such as NASA, Fredlund has been focused on the ways governments are shaping humanity’s expanding ventures off planet.

For all humankind

Leda Zimmerman | Department of Political Science

February 13, 2024

Political science and physics major Leela Fredlund wants to ensure fairness and justice prevail in humanity's leap into space.

MIT Music and Theater Arts Assistant Professor Miguel Zenón holds his Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album.

Miguel Zenón, assistant professor of jazz at MIT, wins Grammy Award

Benjamin Daniel | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

February 8, 2024

The renowned saxophonist won Best Latin Jazz Album along with pianist Luis Perdomo for their album, “El Arte Del Bolero Vol. 2.”

The Climate Project at MIT, a major campus-wide effort, includes new arrangements for promoting cross-Institute collaborations and new mechanisms for engaging with outside partners to speed the development and implementation of climate solutions.

3 Questions: The Climate Project at MIT

MIT News

February 8, 2024

Richard Lester describes an emerging new initiative that will back climate efforts at the Institute and find outside partnerships to drive actionable innovation.